Winnie should have approached elders - AbaThembu

Johannesburg - Winnie Madikizela-Mandela should have
approached the elders in the AbaThembu before launching a claim on the estate
of former president Nelson Mandela, the AbaThembu clan said on Friday.

"It would be appropriate if Nkosikazi Winnie
Madikizela-Mandela thought of approaching the elders before circulating her
interest in the media," said royal spokesperson Daludumo Mtirara.

"She would be properly informed of the custom of
AbaThembu and, in the meantime, Nkosikazi Nosizwe [Gra?a Machel - Mandela's
widow] is our point of entry in the Mandela house regarding any matter.”

Madikizela-Mandela is challenging Mandela's estate and is
seeking the rights to his home in Qunu, Eastern Cape.

Madikizela-Mandela's lawyer Mvuyo Notyesi reportedly
wrote to deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke, a co-executor of the will, two
weeks ago.

In the letter Notyesi argued that AbaThembu custom
dictated that the rights to the property go to Madikizela-Mandela and her
descendants.

"This position becomes applicable irrespective of
whether the wife was divorced or not," Notyesi was quoted as writing.

"It is only in this home that the children and
grandchildren of Mrs Madikizela-Mandela can conduct their own customs and
tradition..."

Supporting affidavits would be filed from AbaThembu
elders and King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, among others.

‘Winnie
has no claim’

It was not an attack on his will, but an assertion of
customary and traditional rights, the letter said.

Mtirara said Madikizela-Mandela had no claim over
Mandela's estate.

"Because of the fact that the site [land] was only
dedicated to Nkosi Dalibhunga [Mandela] in person as the head of the Mandela
house, divorce marked the end of Nkosikazi Winnie Madikizela-Mandela as the
member of the Mandela house."

Mtirara said the land in Qunu on which the house was
built was allocated to former president Mandela as a sign of appreciation of
the role the statesman had played during the liberation struggle.

"The land was neither sold to him nor his former
wife, Nkosikazi Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. Some of the family members were part
of the delegation during the demarcation process in Qunu," he said.

"Nkosi Dalibhunga [Mandela] developed the site while
he was still serving the people of South Africa on a full-time basis. We linked
that site to him because it had nothing to do with his former wife at the
time."

According to the AbaThembu custom, after a divorce, a
former wife can claim a stake that belongs to their former husband in the name
of their children, a son in particular and not daughters and grandchildren from
their daughters, he said.

"Her [Madikizela-Mandela] current situation does not
allow her to claim in the name of her son, who should be the heir in her former
house.

"Daughters belong to their in-laws and those that
are unmarried would be allowed to stay and practise our culture, including
their children if so required."

Madikizela-Mandela, however, is allowed to join the
family during rituals and cultural practices.

Mtirara accused Dalindyebo of creating confusion and
division within the AbaThembu royals.

"We are quite aware that Zwelibanzi Buyelekhaya
Dalindyebo has a potential of dividing families and we would like to warn him
that his family is quite clear about his unreasonable disrupting tactics,"
he said.

Madikizela-Mandela, Mandela's second wife for 38 years,
was left out of Mandela's will, which was released in February following his
death on 5 December last year.